"Someone's already here."

The speaker was an old man with purple hair, dressed in tattered clothes, his face bruised and dirty. The flying sword on his back was covered in cracks, as if it had been through a fierce battle.

"It's you!" Xu Hei exclaimed, "You scared the hell out of me."

Han Te's stealth abilities were terrifying; Xu Hei hadn't even noticed him until he was right behind him, which gave Xu Hei quite a fright.

This guy didn't even bother to close the door, fully utilizing his stealth. Xu Hei had never seen anyone occupy a place like this.

"Han, just a rogue cultivator, all alone, can only hide in this place. I hope Fellow Daoist Xu won't mind," Han Te said with a bitter smile.

Xu Hei was speechless.

He didn't want someone sitting next to him while he was trying to break through, so he took out a Supreme Spirit Stone and handed it over. "Can you find another place? It's too cramped for two people."

Considering there were people searching outside, and Xu Hei had just killed two people and was quite wealthy, he took out two more stones and tossed them to Han Te.

"Looks like you've struck it rich again, Boss Xu. Han thanks you in advance."

Han Te chuckled, stood up, and was about to find a way to slip away.

Suddenly, a roar came from outside, "Why is this door closed? Come quickly, that kid is here!"

In an instant, the Blood Refining Sect members surrounded the stone chamber, sealing it off completely.

Han Te immediately retreated to the corner of the stone chamber, looking panicked. "Boss Xu, what do we do now? We can't get out!"

Xu Hei's face darkened; they had found him so quickly.

The original restriction of the stone chamber had been activated, so those outside couldn't see inside. However, Xu Hei could clearly sense the Flame Demon Ancestor, Blood Knife Patriarch, and a group of Blood Refining Sect cultivators blocking the entrance, their eyes burning with anger.

Going out now would likely mean certain death.

"Listen up inside, come out obediently and you might have a chance to live. Otherwise, when we break in, even death will be a luxury."

The taunting voice of a Blood Refining Sect cultivator came from outside, as they swung their large blades against the door, making a clanging sound.

Xu Hei and Han Te exchanged glances, both opening their mouths to speak but stopping, falling into silence.

Han Te smiled bitterly, "This stone chamber is quite spacious. How about we each take half? No, I'll just take a corner."

Han Te shrank into the farthest corner, being considerate since he had taken the spirit stones, leaving most of the space for Xu Hei.

At this point, it seemed to be the only solution.

Xu Hei thought for a moment and said, "Go guard the door. If they really break in, help hold them off for a while, and I'll make sure you're well compensated with spirit stones!"

Xu Hei took out thirty Supreme Spirit Stones and then put them back.

Han Te's gaze instantly locked onto the stones, staring intently at them even as they were put away.

He hesitated, then slowly said, "Boss Xu, who do you want to kill? If you open the door now, even though my strength is low, it's not that I can't..."

"I'm not asking you to kill anyone, just guard the door!"

Xu Hei thought Han Te had misunderstood and quickly explained.

"Oh, that's no problem then."

Han Te walked to the entrance and sat down cross-legged.

Outside the stone chamber.

The Blood Refining Sect members shouted for a while, seeing no response, they began to discuss their strategy.

The Flame Demon Ancestor said, "This pill chamber once produced a Divine Fusion Pill, its restriction is extraordinary and hard to break."

Everyone's eyes turned to the three members of the Yan Dao Sect in the distance.

At this moment, the three from Yan Dao Sect were sitting in front of a sealed stone chamber, fully focused on analyzing the formation.

Blood Knife Patriarch stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Fellow Daoists, could you unlock the restriction over there? You've done it once before, it shouldn't be difficult."

Huang Tiancheng remained focused, ignoring them.

Hua Qingyun glanced at Blood Knife Patriarch and said, "Sorry, we're at a critical moment in deciphering the formation, we can't be distracted."

She guessed that the stone chamber in front of them might produce a Divine Fusion Pill!

According to their previous agreement, the first Divine Fusion Pill was bought by the Blood Refining Sect. The next ones produced would go to Yan Dao Sect, and then to Tianhen Sword Sect.

That's why they were eager to open this stone chamber.

"You've unlocked that place before, doing it again won't take long. Any one of you three can do it, and you'll be well rewarded!"

Blood Knife Patriarch frowned, a hint of displeasure in his eyes.

"Can't you see we're busy? Get lost!"

Another senior brother, surnamed Sun, rudely shouted.

This person, named Sun Youcai, had formation skills second only to Huang Tiancheng and was the most hot-tempered of the three. He wouldn't tolerate such behavior and scolded them without hesitation.

Blood Knife Patriarch's face immediately turned sour.

"Still not leaving? Waiting for an invitation?" Sun Youcai said coldly.

Blood Knife Patriarch suppressed his anger and turned away.

"No worries! Our Blood Refining Sect isn't without means to break restrictions, just a bit troublesome," the Flame Demon Ancestor said calmly.

He stared at the stone chamber door, raised his hand, and formed ten layers of blood handprints, stacking them together.

Instantly, the world turned blood-red, filled with a fierce and ominous aura, echoing with ghostly wails. The color of the blood handprints grew darker, almost dripping with red, like the hand of a demon, intimidating to behold.

This was still within the stable space of the Flying Spirit Garden. If it were outside, the space might not withstand it and collapse.

Everyone immediately realized.

The Flame Demon Ancestor's method of breaking the restriction was to use brute force.

Even though this restriction was crafted by ancient cultivators, it had long lost its former strength due to the passage of time. With so many Divine Transformation cultivators attacking together, it wasn't impossible to break through, just time-consuming.

Previously, they were afraid of damaging the pills inside, but this stone chamber didn't have that issue.

"Boom!!"

The Flame Demon Ancestor struck with a palm, the ten-layered blood handprints crashing onto the stone chamber door, causing a thunderous roar. Waves of ripples spread across the light screen, absorbed by the stone chamber, and dissipated underground, reducing the force by more than half.

However, a faint handprint was still left on the door.

"This force-dissipating method is truly profound, but it can't last forever."

"Everyone, attack together!"

With the Flame Demon Ancestor's command, everyone took action, using various techniques to strike at the door, focusing on one point of the formation.

A phantom light shield repeatedly appeared, blocking the attacks and channeling them into the ground, ultimately bearing less than a tenth of the power.

During this time, Xu Hei first used the Night Demon Wings to isolate himself, then set up a barrier formation to prevent Han Te from spying.

He took out the Soul Nourishing Tree and placed the branch storing his split soul on it.

"How long will it take?" Xu Hei asked.